Breitling Blackbird Red Strike Chronograph Limited Edition

Presented in the traditionally massive stainless steel body, the new Breitling Blackbird Red Strike Chronograph Limited Edition watch may be of particular interest to those still living in the times of the Caribbean Crisis and dreaming about preemptive nuclear strikes and reconnaissance flights over the Soviet Russia. A high annual income is also a must, since the watch, even given its relatively limited edition status, won’t come cheap.

Why black and red? Hey, because that is the color of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird strategic spy aircraft that was in service from 1966 till 1998!

Well, as a matter of fact, Blackbird the plane wasn’t exactly black: it was painted in a very, very dark shade of blue so as to better blend into the night sky. The red lines on its wings and fuselage were marking places where the skin of the plane was especially thin and could be damaged if treaded without extreme care.

Although I would have been tempted to substitute the normal Superluminova that covers the hour indexes and hands with a colored one in order to make the dial exclusively black-and-red, Breitling‘s designers refrained from such a blatant decision and left things as they are.

As a result we see a very legible, high-contrast dial layout that lets you easily read time and keeps the chronograph indicators and the big date window at 12 o’clock where they should be — in the background.

The watch is offered in a normal for the brand 43.7 mm body, which is available either in full-polished or satin-brushed finish. Those looking for even more intimidating color scheme should probably turn their attention to the Breitling Blackbird Chronograph Limited Edition Blacksteel model that comes in a black DLC-coated stainless steel case.

As the rest of the family, the Breitling Blackbird Red Strike Chronograph Limited Edition is powered by the Caliber B44 automatic movement, which is based on a high-grade version of the well-known ETA 2892 engine. As usual, the movement is an officially COSC-certified chronometer that offers both precision and robustness.

Breitling plans to limit the watch’s production to 2000 units, which makes it not so rare at all.

The Swiss watchmaker will introduce the model bearing a price tag of some $7800, which is quite expensive for a watch animated by ETA 2892 (even if it was upgraded to higher standards of Swiss certification authority,) but still bearable all things considered.